Budapest volumes surge 22.7% in 2016

10 / 01 / 2017

Budapest Airport recorded a 22.7% surge in cargo throughputs in 2016 to around 112,000 tonnes.

René Droese, director property and cargo at the Hungarian hub, said that the increase in cargo volumes was a “clear indicator that the Hungarian economy is doing well, and that the demand for export by air of high-value products, such as electronics or pharmaceuticals, is growing”.

Droese continued: “Our foreign partners continue to find more and more advantages in flying their cargo directly to Budapest due to its central location in the heart of Europe.

Hungary, at the crossroads of eastern and western Europe saw 2016’s airfreight manifest range from aircraft jet engines to a baby female hippopotamus, travelling from Nyíregyháza Zoo, via Budapest and Dubai, to Jakarta, Indonesia.

The hippo travelled in a standard pallet-size waterproof cage, with sufficient ventilation, in the belly cargo compartment of Emirates 777-200.

The hippo was not the only special care cargo item at Budapest Airport last year. In early November, 14 Przewalski’s horses were flown from a Hungarian national park to a sanctuary in southern Russia, to be returned to their earlier natural habitat in the wild.

Added Droese: “Budapest Airport, together with its ground handling partners, is ready to accommodate any high-value, special cargo that may emerge, including live animals for breeding purposes or thoroughbred horses for sports.”

This year’s cargo developments at Budapest will see the final stages of the construction of two new office and warehouse facilities, to be handed to DHL and TNT Express.

Both projects are part of BUD 2020, a five-year development program launched last year, which also includes the construction of the Cargo City project, with 16,000 sq m of warehouse and office space next to Terminal 2, the opening scheduled for the end of 2018.